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Patterns of Social Inequality and Exclusion

NCERT Class 12 · Sociology Based on NCERT Class 12 Sociology textbook · Free CBSE study kit

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Chapter Notes

Overview
This chapter examines how social institutions like caste, tribe, family, and the market create and sustain patterns of inequality and exclusion in Indian society. It challenges the commonsense view that individual effort alone determines life chances, arguing that social inequality is systematic, group-based, and structural. The one big idea a student must walk away with is that social inequality and exclusion are not natural or inevitable but are produced and perpetuated by society through institutions, ideologies, and practices like caste, untouchability, patriarchy, and ableism.
Key Concepts (21)
Social inequality
Patterns of unequal access to social resources (economic, cultural, and social capital) among groups in a society.
e.g. A Dalit family may have less access to quality education and high-paying jobs compared to an upper-caste family, even if individuals have similar abilities.
Social stratification
A system by which categories of people in a society are ranked in a hierarchy that shapes identity, experiences, relations, and access to resources and opportunities.
e.g. The caste system ranks Brahmins at the top and Dalits at the bottom, determining social interaction and marriage rules.
Economic capital
Material assets and income that can be used to acquire other forms of capital.
e.g. A wealthy family can afford expensive higher education for their children.
Cultural capital
Educational qualifications, status, and knowledge that provide advantages in society.
e.g. A person with a degree from a prestigious university may get better job opportunities.
Social capital
Networks of contacts and social associations that can be used to gain advantages.
e.g. Someone with influential relatives may get a job through recommendations.
Prejudice
Pre-conceived opinions or attitudes held by members of one group towards another, formed in advance of any familiarity with the subject and resistant to change.
e.g. Believing that all members of a particular caste are lazy without any evidence.
Stereotype
Fixed and inflexible characterisations of a group of people, refusing to recognise variation across individuals or contexts.
e.g. The colonial stereotype of certain communities as 'martial races' and others as 'effeminate'.
Discrimination
Actual behaviour or practices that disqualify members of one group from opportunities open to others, often based on prejudice.
e.g. Refusing to rent a house to someone because of their religion or caste.
Social exclusion
Ways in which individuals become cut off from full involvement in the wider society due to systematic structural features, not accidental factors.
e.g. Dalits being prohibited from sharing drinking water sources or participating in collective religious worship.
Untouchability
An extreme and vicious aspect of the caste system that prescribes stringent social sanctions against members of castes located at the bottom of the purity-pollution scale, involving exclusion, humiliation-subordination, and exploitation.
e.g. The practice of 'distance pollution' where the mere shadow of an 'untouchable' person is considered polluting.
Dalit
A term meaning 'downtrodden' used by ex-untouchable communities to assert their identity and convey the sense of an oppressed people; resonates with Dr. Ambedkar's philosophy.
e.g. The Dalit Panthers, a radical group that emerged in western India in the early 1970s, used the term to assert identity.
Adivasi
A term meaning 'original inhabitants' coined in the 1930s as part of the struggle against colonial intrusion and outside settlers, connoting political awareness and assertion of rights.
e.g. Adivasi movements demanding land rights and protesting displacement due to mining and dam projects.
Other Backward Classes (OBCs)
Socially and educationally backward classes, identified largely by caste, that are neither part of the 'forward' castes nor the Dalits; a diverse group subject to varying levels of discrimination.
e.g. The Mandal Commission report (1990) recommended reservations for OBCs in government jobs and education.
Reservations
A state initiative involving setting aside seats or places for Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, and OBCs in legislatures, government jobs, and educational institutions to compensate for past and present discrimination.
e.g. Reservation of 15% of seats in central government jobs for Scheduled Castes.
Gender inequality
A form of social inequality and exclusion based on socially constructed differences between men and women, not biological differences.
e.g. Fewer women in positions of public power or unequal inheritance rights for women.
Sati
The practice of a widow immolating herself on her husband's funeral pyre, which was campaigned against by Raja Rammohun Roy in the 19th century.
e.g. Rammohun Roy attacked sati on the basis of humanitarian appeals and Hindu shastras.
Endogamy
The practice of marriage restricted to members of the same caste, reinforcing the ascribed aspect of social inequality.
e.g. Caste-based marriage rules that prevent inter-caste marriages and blurring of caste lines.
Ideology (in stratification)
Patterns of belief that support and justify a system of social stratification, making it seem fair or inevitable.
e.g. The caste system justified by the opposition of purity and pollution, with Brahmins as superior and Dalits as inferior.
Ascribed status
A social position assigned at birth, often inherited from parents, such as caste or gender.
e.g. A child born into a Dalit family is ascribed the social position of a Dalit.
Internal colonialism
A process where the state or dominant groups exploit resources from marginalised regions or groups within the same country, as seen in the treatment of adivasis.
e.g. Acquisition of adivasi lands for mining and dam projects without adequate compensation, justified in the name of national development.
Matrilineal society
A society where descent and inheritance are traced through the female line, challenging the notion that gender inequality is natural.
e.g. The Nairs of Kerala and the Khasis of Meghalaya are examples of matrilineal societies.
How It Works
How social stratification works
  1. Social stratification is a characteristic of society, not individual differences; it distributes resources unequally among categories of people.
  2. It persists over generations through family inheritance and ascribed status, reinforced by endogamy.
  3. It is supported by an ideology (beliefs) that makes the system seem fair or inevitable, such as the purity-pollution ideology in the caste system.
  4. Those at the top tend to support the system, while those at the bottom are more likely to challenge it.
💡 Students often forget that stratification is society-wide and not just about individual talent or effort.
How the caste system perpetuates inequality
  1. Caste is linked to occupation at birth, with no choice for individuals.
  2. Each caste has a specific place in the hierarchy of social status, with ritual and economic status often coinciding.
  3. Untouchability imposes extreme exclusion, humiliation, and exploitation on Dalits, including prohibition from sharing water sources and participating in religious worship.
  4. Despite modern changes, the caste-class correlation remains stable at the macro level, with upper castes dominating privileged positions and lower castes overrepresented in poverty.
💡 Students often think caste has disappeared; the chapter shows it still affects life chances in the 21st century.
How social exclusion operates
  1. Social exclusion is systematic, not accidental, resulting from structural features of society.
  2. It prevents individuals or groups from accessing essential goods and services like education, health, transportation, insurance, and justice.
  3. It is not limited to economic resources but includes discrimination based on gender, religion, ethnicity, caste, and disability.
  4. Legislation alone cannot end exclusion; constant social campaigns are needed to change awareness and sensitivity.
💡 Students often confuse social exclusion with poverty alone; it is broader and includes denial of participation in social, cultural, and political life.
How the state addresses caste and tribe discrimination
  1. The Indian state has special programmes for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes since before Independence, including reservations in legislatures, government jobs, and educational institutions.
  2. Reservations are proportional to the population share of SCs and STs; for OBCs, the proportion is decided differently.
  3. Laws like the Caste Disabilities Removal Act (1850), Article 17 of the Constitution (abolition of untouchability), and the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act (1989) prohibit and punish caste discrimination.
  4. Despite repeated legislation, discrimination and atrocities continue, showing that law alone cannot ensure social change.
💡 Students often think reservations are only for SCs/STs; OBC reservations were added later, and the proportion is decided differently.
How adivasi marginalisation occurred
  1. Colonial government reserved forest tracts for its own use, denying adivasis access to forests for gathering produce and shifting cultivation.
  2. After Independence, the government continued the monopoly over forests and adopted capital-intensive industrialisation requiring mineral resources from adivasi areas.
  3. Adivasi lands were acquired for mining and dam projects, leading to displacement without adequate compensation or rehabilitation.
  4. Economic liberalisation since the 1990s has made it easier for corporate firms to acquire adivasi land, continuing the pattern of internal colonialism.
💡 Students often miss the link between colonial forest policies and post-Independence displacement; both are part of a continuous pattern.
How the women's question arose in modern India
  1. The women's question emerged as part of 19th century middle class social reform movements, inspired by Western democratic ideals and pride in Indian traditions.
  2. Reformers like Raja Rammohun Roy campaigned against sati using both humanitarian arguments and Hindu shastras.
  3. Ranade and others worked for widow remarriage, citing both Western moral philosophy and Vedic authorities.
  4. Jyotiba Phule attacked both caste and gender discrimination simultaneously, founding the Satyashodak Samaj.
  5. Women themselves wrote and protested, as seen in Tarabai Shinde's 'Stree Purush Tulana' and Begum Rokeya's 'Sultana's Dream'.
💡 Students often think only men fought for women's rights; the chapter highlights women's own contributions like Tarabai Shinde and Begum Rokeya.
Exam Traps — Don't Make These Mistakes
⚠ Confusing prejudice with discrimination
✗ Prejudice and discrimination are the same thing.
→ Prejudice refers to attitudes and opinions, while discrimination refers to actual behaviour. They are related but distinct concepts.
✓ Prejudice is a pre-conceived attitude or opinion held towards a group, while discrimination is the actual behaviour or practice that disqualifies members of a group from opportunities.
⚠ Thinking social inequality is only economic
✗ Social inequality is just about money and income differences.
→ Social inequality includes unequal access to cultural capital (education, status) and social capital (networks), not just economic capital.
✓ Social inequality refers to unequal access to three forms of capital: economic (material assets), cultural (educational qualifications), and social (networks of contacts).
⚠ Believing caste and occupation are no longer linked
✗ Caste has nothing to do with occupation today because people can change jobs.
→ While the link has become less rigid, the caste-class correlation remains stable at the macro level; upper castes still dominate privileged positions and lower castes are overrepresented in poverty.
✓ Although the link between caste and occupation has weakened, at the macro level the correlation remains stable, with upper castes enjoying higher economic status and lower castes facing greater poverty.
⚠ Confusing 'Dalit' with 'Harijan'
✗ Dalit and Harijan mean the same thing and are both acceptable terms.
→ Harijan was popularised by Gandhi but is now considered pejorative; Dalit is the term coined by the communities themselves and conveys political assertion and dignity.
✓ Dalit is the preferred term meaning 'downtrodden', used by ex-untouchable communities to assert identity, while Harijan (children of God) was popularised by Gandhi but is now seen as patronising.
⚠ Thinking gender inequality is natural or biological
✗ Gender inequality exists because men and women are biologically different.
→ The chapter argues that inequalities between men and women are social, not natural, as shown by matrilineal societies where women have different roles.
✓ Gender inequality is a social construct, not a biological given; evidence from matrilineal societies like the Khasis shows that women can hold positions of power and inheritance.
⚠ Assuming OBCs are a homogeneous group
✗ All OBCs are equally disadvantaged.
→ OBCs are diverse, with upper OBCs (landed castes) being dominant in rural areas and lower OBCs being very poor, often similar to Dalits.
✓ OBCs are a diverse category; upper OBCs enjoy rural dominance while lower OBCs face severe disadvantage, making it a difficult political category to work with.
Compare & Contrast
Nature of the concept
Prejudice
Discrimination
Prejudice is an attitude or opinion (pre-conceived), while discrimination is actual behaviour or practice that disqualifies members of a group.
System of stratification
Caste system
Race-based apartheid (South Africa)
Caste is justified by purity-pollution ideology and linked to occupation and birth, while apartheid was justified by racial ideology and enforced by military repression; both involve hierarchy, exclusion, and exploitation.
Nature of marginalisation and struggle
Dalit
Adivasi
Dalits face caste-based untouchability and are dispersed across India, while adivasis face displacement due to resource extraction and are concentrated in contiguous areas, allowing them to demand separate states.
Constitutional recognition and disadvantage
Scheduled Castes (SCs)
Other Backward Classes (OBCs)
SCs are at the bottom of the caste hierarchy and suffer extreme untouchability, while OBCs are a diverse group of low-status castes that face varying levels of discrimination short of untouchability.
Exam Focus
Marks pattern: 2 MCQs (1 mark each), 1 Short Answer (3 marks), 1 Long Answer (5 marks) — total 10 marks typically
Most asked: Definition and features of social stratification · Untouchability and its three dimensions (exclusion, humiliation-subordination, exploitation) · Difference between prejudice, stereotype, and discrimination · Reservation policy and related constitutional provisions (Article 17, SC/ST Act 1989) · Adivasi displacement and internal colonialism · Women's reform movements and key reformers (Rammohun Roy, Phule, Ranade, Sir Syed Ahmed Khan) · Comparison of caste and race (apartheid)
Don't skip: Explain the three dimensions of untouchability with examples.; Distinguish between prejudice, stereotype, and discrimination.; Discuss the role of the state in addressing caste discrimination (reservations and laws).; Analyse the impact of colonialism and development projects on adivasis.
One-Line Revision (read aloud before the exam)
  1. Social inequality is about groups, not individuals, and is systematic and structured.
  2. Social stratification is a society-wide system that ranks categories of people in a hierarchy.
  3. The three forms of capital are economic, cultural, and social capital (Bourdieu).
  4. Prejudice is a pre-conceived attitude; discrimination is actual behaviour.
  5. Stereotypes are fixed characterisations of a group that ignore individual variation.
  6. Social exclusion is systematic and structural, not accidental.
  7. Untouchability involves exclusion, humiliation-subordination, and exploitation.
  8. Dalit means 'downtrodden' and is a term of political assertion.
  9. Adivasi means 'original inhabitants' and refers to tribal communities facing displacement.
  10. OBCs are a diverse group of backward castes, not a homogeneous category.
  11. Reservations are for SCs, STs, and OBCs in legislatures, jobs, and education.
  12. Article 17 of the Constitution abolishes untouchability.
  13. The SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act 1989 strengthens legal provisions against caste violence.
  14. Gender inequality is social, not biological, as shown by matrilineal societies.
  15. Raja Rammohun Roy campaigned against sati using both Western and Hindu arguments.
  16. Jyotiba Phule attacked both caste and gender discrimination.
  17. Tarabai Shinde wrote 'Stree Purush Tulana' protesting double standards.
  18. Begum Rokeya wrote 'Sultana's Dream', a feminist science fiction story.
  19. Adivasi displacement is a form of internal colonialism.
  20. The Mandal Commission report (1990) led to OBC reservations.

MCQs — 10 Questions with Answers

Q1. Which sociologist conceptualized the three forms of capital — economic, cultural, and social?

  • A. Pierre Bourdieu ✓
  • B. Max Weber
  • C. Émile Durkheim
  • D. Karl Marx

Answer: A — Bourdieu 1986 developed the theory of capital showing how non-economic forms (cultural qualifications, social networks) translate into material advantage.

Q2. Social inequality is best described as

  • A. Differences in individual abilities and effort
  • B. Unequal distribution of valued resources among social groups due to systemic structures ✓
  • C. Natural outcome of genetic differences between people
  • D. Temporary economic fluctuation in income

Answer: B — Social inequality arises from society-wide structures (caste, class, gender) that systematically distribute resources unequally, not from innate individual differences.

Q3. Ascribed status refers to

  • A. Social position earned through personal effort and merit
  • B. Social position inherited at birth and difficult to change ✓
  • C. Temporary role played in social interactions
  • D. Economic rank determined by annual income

Answer: B — Ascribed status (e.g., caste, gender, family wealth) is assigned at birth and persists across generations through inheritance and social structures.

Q4. Which of the following is NOT a dimension of social inequality in India?

  • A. Caste-based ritual ranking and untouchability
  • B. Gender and patriarchal control
  • C. Tribal territorial exclusion and displacement
  • D. Regional and linguistic differences alone without hierarchy ✓

Answer: D — Regional and linguistic diversity exist in India but do not automatically constitute inequality unless accompanied by systematic hierarchical ranking and resource denial.

Q5. According to the text, why does hard labour performed by poor people rarely lead to improvement in their life chances? — **Assertion-Reason** **Assertion**: Hard work is insufficient to escape poverty. **Reason**: Poor people lack inherited capital, face group-based discrimination, and have no resources to invest in education or business.

  • A. Both Assertion and Reason are correct; Reason explains Assertion ✓
  • B. Both are correct but Reason does not explain Assertion
  • C. Assertion is correct; Reason is incorrect
  • D. Both Assertion and Reason are incorrect

Answer: A — The text explicitly argues that structural inequality (lack of capital, caste/gender discrimination, exclusion) prevents upward mobility despite intensive labour.

Q6. Cultural capital, as distinct from economic capital, includes

  • A. Cash savings and property ownership
  • B. Educational qualifications, credentials, and status ✓
  • C. Biological inheritance and genetic traits
  • D. Annual income from employment

Answer: B — Cultural capital refers to educational qualifications and social credentials that provide status advantages; it can be converted into economic capital through well-paid jobs.

Q7. Social stratification is described as a characteristic of society because

  • A. It is based on individual talents and abilities only
  • B. It exists in primitive hunting-gathering societies to the same extent as modern societies
  • C. It is a society-wide system that unequally distributes resources to categories of people regardless of innate individual abilities ✓
  • D. It emerges naturally from competition between talented individuals

Answer: C — Stratification is societal because surplus resources in technologically advanced societies are distributed unequally to groups based on social structures, not merit alone.

Q8. Which statement best explains the relationship between caste and class in India? — **HOTS**

  • A. Caste and class are identical systems; there is no distinction
  • B. Caste determines ritual status, class determines economic resources; they overlap but are distinct (Weber's concept) ✓
  • C. Class has replaced caste entirely in modern India
  • D. Caste is economic, class is social status

Answer: B — Caste is about ritual ranking and status hierarchy; class is about economic resources and income — they overlap in India (a Brahmin may be poor; a wealthy Dalit faces ritual exclusion) but are analytically distinct per Weber.

Q9. Manual scavenging persists in India despite the Prohibition of Manual Scavenging Act 2013 because

  • A. The Act is too recent to have impact
  • B. No poor people need the work
  • C. Caste-based social structures enforce occupational segregation and belief in ritual pollution ✓
  • D. Manual scavenging requires no enforcement

Answer: C — Structural caste inequality — beliefs about pollution, occupational closure (jati rules), and social stigma — persist even when legal prohibition exists; poor Dalits remain confined to polluting work.

Q10. The text uses the proverb 'If hard labour were really such a good thing, the rich would keep it all for themselves' to illustrate that

  • A. Rich people are lazy and refuse to work
  • B. Hard work is the primary cause of wealth and poverty
  • C. Structural inequality, not individual effort, determines life chances and resource access ✓
  • D. Poor people are not capable of hard work

Answer: C — The proverb ironically shows that if hard work were a path to wealth, wealthy people would monopolize it — instead, the poor do hardest labour yet gain least, proving structure (not effort) determines outcomes.

Flashcards

What is social capital according to Bourdieu?

Networks of contacts and social associations that can be converted into economic or cultural advantages.

Define social stratification

A society-wide system that ranks categories of people in a hierarchy and unequally distributes social resources among them.

What is ascribed status?

A social position assigned at birth (e.g., caste, gender) that persists across generations and is inherited through family.

Distinguish between economic capital and cultural capital

Economic capital is material assets and income; cultural capital is educational qualifications, credentials, and status that provide social advantages.

Why do poor people rarely escape poverty despite hard work?

They lack inherited capital to invest in education or business, face structural exclusion based on caste/gender/tribe, and work in sectors with low productivity.

What does it mean that social inequality is produced by society, not natural?

Inequality arises from social structures and institutions that unequally distribute resources, not from innate differences in ability or effort.

Give one example of how caste creates and sustains inequality in India

Caste enforces endogamy and occupational specialization; untouchables historically forced into polluting work (manual scavenging) with no path to mobility.

What is the difference between discrimination and exclusion?

Discrimination is unequal treatment of individuals; exclusion is systematic denial of group access to resources, opportunities, and social participation.

How do caste, class, and gender intersect to create inequality?

A Dalit woman faces compounded disadvantage from caste, class poverty, and patriarchal control — multiple hierarchies overlap to intensify exclusion.

What is the relationship between family and social stratification?

Family inherits and transmits social resources (property, education, contacts) across generations, making stratification a characteristic of society not individuals.

Important Board Questions

Define social inequality and distinguish it from individual differences in ability or effort. Give one example from India. [2 marks]

Social inequality = group-based, systemic distribution of resources via social structures (caste/class/gender), NOT individual talent. Example: manual scavenging confined to Dalits despite intelligence or effort (Prohibition Act 2013 persists because caste structures remain).

Explain the concept of ascribed status and its relationship to social stratification. How does ascribed status persist across generations in India? Use caste as an example and discuss one limitation of mobility based on achieved status. [5 marks]

Ascribed status = birth-based (caste, gender), inherited through family, difficult to change. Caste example: jati at birth determines occupation, ritual rank, marriage partner, and access to resources (endogamy, occupational closure). Limitation: even achieved status (education) cannot fully overcome caste discrimination (Dalit child in school faces exclusion). Reference: Weber's distinction between status and class shows how caste (ascribed status) persists even when class (economic resources) changes.

Analyse the three dimensions of capital — economic, cultural, and social — and explain how they reinforce each other to sustain inequality across generations in India. Use the example of how a poor construction worker's child differs from a wealthy contractor's child in terms of access to these forms of capital and life chances. Discuss one structural barrier that prevents mobility despite individual effort. [6 marks]

Economic capital = assets/income; cultural capital = education/credentials; social capital = networks/contacts (Bourdieu). Wealthy contractor's child: inherits property (economic) → affords elite school (cultural) → inherits father's business contacts (social) → becomes contractor. Poor worker's child: no inherited assets → attends government school → has no business networks → remains labourer despite hard work. Barrier: caste-based occupational closure (if poor worker is Dalit, even education may not grant equal opportunity in upper-caste-dominated sectors like business or administration). Cycle repeats: ascribed status (caste/class birth) determines inherited capital → shapes identity and opportunities → limits life chances even with merit.

Assertion-Reason Questions for Patterns of Social Inequality and Exclusion

Q1. Assertion (A):

A person's social position being ascribed means it is determined by factors outside their individual control at birth.

Reason (R):

Social stratification persists over generations because resources and social position are inherited through families rather than earned through merit.

Answer: A — Both A and R are true, and R is the correct explanation of A — Both are true, and the reason correctly explains the assertion. Ascribed status (based on family, caste, tribe) causes intergenerational persistence because advantage/disadvantage is inherited. This is why 'social stratification persists over generations.'

Q2. Assertion (A):

Hard work is the primary determinant of whether poor construction workers improve their life chances.

Reason (R):

The chapter shows that poor people often perform the hardest physical labour yet rarely improve their situations, suggesting structural barriers beyond individual effort limit mobility.

Answer: D — A is false but R is true — The assertion is false (contradicted by the chapter's main argument), but the reason is true. The chapter uses the South American proverb to show hard work does NOT determine outcomes; structural factors do. The reason undermines the assertion.

Q3. Assertion (A):

In technologically advanced societies with surplus production, social stratification is more pronounced than in hunting-gathering societies.

Reason (R):

Surplus allows for unequal distribution of resources to various social categories regardless of people's innate individual abilities.

Answer: A — Both A and R are true, and R is the correct explanation of A — Both are true, and the reason explains why: stratification depends on economic surplus, not on nature. This proves inequality is structural, not natural. The chapter explicitly states this principle.

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Case-Based Questions (CBQ) for Patterns of Social Inequality and Exclusion

Case Study:

In a study comparing two families in urban India, Family A (industrialist background) has: parents with higher education, ancestral wealth of ₹5 crores, connections to 50+ business associates, and a 10-year-old child in a private school costing ₹3 lakh annually. Family B (domestic worker background) has: parents with 8th-grade education, savings of ₹50,000, no business connections, and a 10-year-old child in a government school. Both children score equally well in class 5 examinations. By age 25, Family A's child secures a high-paying IT job through family contacts; Family B's child works as a shop assistant despite similar intelligence.

Q1. According to Bourdieu's framework, which form of capital most directly enabled Family A's child to secure the IT job?

  • A. Economic capital alone (family wealth)
  • B. A combination of economic capital (fee-paying school), cultural capital (elite education), and social capital (family business contacts) ✓
  • C. Natural talent and superior intelligence inherited genetically
  • D. Hard work and personal determination

Answer: B

Q2. The unequal outcomes for both children despite equal intelligence best illustrates which principle of social stratification mentioned in the chapter?

  • A. Social stratification is primarily a function of individual differences
  • B. Social stratification is a characteristic of society and persists through inherited advantages, not innate abilities ✓
  • C. Social stratification does not exist in modern India
  • D. Social stratification is determined by luck and fate

Answer: B

Q3. Which social institution played the most significant role in creating different life chances for these children?

  • A. Religion
  • B. Individual personality and talent
  • C. The political system
  • D. The family and education system, which transmit inherited economic, cultural, and social capital across generations ✓

Answer: D

Q4. If Family B's child had been given access to the same expensive private school as Family A's child, but retained no family business connections, what outcome would the chapter's analysis predict?

  • A. The child would achieve the same success as Family A's child
  • B. Wealth and education alone guarantee success
  • C. The child would have improved chances due to cultural capital (education) but would likely still face barriers due to lack of social capital (network connections) ✓
  • D. The child's life chances would remain completely unchanged

Answer: C

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Previous Year Questions (PYQ) for Patterns of Social Inequality and Exclusion

Real CBSE board exam questions from past papers — free to attempt.

CBSE 2026 · Set Sociology · 1 mark

Which of the following is a public perception of disability?

  • Disabilities are not understood as biologically given.
  • The disabled person is not seen as a victim.
  • Disability is not linked with an individual's self-perception.
  • The idea of disability suggests that they are in need of help.

CBSE 2026 · Set Sociology · 2 marks

Social exclusion is not accidental but systematic – it is the result of structural features of society.

In the context of the above statement, highlight the meaning of social exclusion.

CBSE 2026 · Set Sociology · 2 marks

The 'Schedules' listing the castes and tribes recognised as deserving of special treatment because of the massive discrimination practiced against them were drawn up in 1935, by the British Indian government.

Post-independence, which was the most important initiative taken by the government to compensate for this discrimination? Write briefly about it.

CBSE 2026 · Set Sociology · 2 marks

The notion of minority groups usually involves some sort of a relative disadvantage. Exemplify the statement.

CBSE 2026 · Set Sociology · 2 marks

In a country where half the children in the age group of 5 – 14 years are out of school, how can there be space for children with disabilities, especially if a segregated schooling is being advocated for them?

State two ways by which a disabled child can achieve autonomy.

CBSE 2025 · Set 62_Sociology · 1 mark

Social inequality and exclusion are facts of life. Social inequality and exclusion are social because they are not about individuals but about groups. In every society, some people have a greater share of valued resources – money, property, education, health and power – than others. People often face discrimination and exclusion because of their gender, religion, ethnicity, language, caste and disability.

Social inequality and exclusion are facts of life because : (I) This everydayness of social inequality and exclusion often makes them appear inevitable, almost natural. (II) We often think of them as being 'deserved' or 'justified' in some sense. (III) These are natural which can be changed. (IV) The poor and marginalised are not blamed for their own plight. Which of the above statements are correct ?

  • (I) and (II)
  • (I) and (III)
  • (I) and (IV)
  • (II) and (III)

CBSE 2025 · Set 62_Sociology · 1 mark

Social inequality and exclusion are facts of life. Social inequality and exclusion are social because they are not about individuals but about groups. In every society, some people have a greater share of valued resources – money, property, education, health and power – than others. People often face discrimination and exclusion because of their gender, religion, ethnicity, language, caste and disability.

Which of the following statements is not true related to Exclusion of Dalits ?

  • The institution of untouchability does not refer to the avoidance or prohibition of physical contact.
  • Untouchability refers to a much broader set of social sanctions.
  • Untouchable castes are outside the caste hierarchy.
  • They are considered to be so impure that their mere touch severely pollutes members of all other castes.

CBSE 2025 · Set 62_Sociology · 4 marks

Sociologists use the term 'Social Stratification ' to refer to a system by which categories of people in a society are ranked in a hierarchy. How does Social Stratification persist over generations ?

CBSE 2025 · Set 62_Sociology · 4 marks

There is a close relationship between disability and poverty. Discuss.

CBSE 2024 · Set 62_Sociology · 1 mark

Which of the following do not belong to each other?

  • Yadavs of Bihar and Uttar Pradesh
  • Vokkaligas of Karnataka
  • Jats of Punjab
  • Khammas of Tamil Nadu

CBSE 2024 · Set 62_Sociology · 4 marks

I am invisible, understand, simply because people refuse to see me. Like the bodiless heads you see sometimes in the circus sideshows, it is as though I have been surrounded by mirrors of hard distorting glass. When they approach me they see only my surroundings i.e., themselves or figments of their imagination. Indeed everything and anything except me. (Ellison, 1952 : 3)

"I am invisible, understand, simply because people refuse to see me. Like the bodiless heads you see sometimes in the circus sideshows, it is as though I have been surrounded by mirrors of hard distorting glass. When they approach me they see only my surroundings i.e., themselves or figments of their imagination. Indeed everything and anything except me." (Ellison, 1952 : 3) Mention some of the common features central to the public perception of invisibility/disability.

CBSE 2023 · Set 62_Sociology · 1 mark

In every society, some people have a greater share of valued resources — money, property, education, health, and power — than others. These social resources can be divided into three forms of capital. Which of the following is not a form of capital?

  • Economic
  • Cultural
  • Social
  • Educational

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